None has a chance of getting hired, of course. But neither does any real coach New Orleans might interview. So the Saints should bring in Snoop just to poke fun at the overly officious NFL.

The league’s Rooney Rule requires teams to interview one minority candidate for each head coaching vacancy. It’s a good idea with a noble goal, but it has jumped the tracks of common sense here.

If a team can hire a two-time Super Bowl champion coach, why make it pretend to be interested in someone else?

Payton is spending next season in bounty timeout, and he has made no secret Parcells might fill in. That has rankled ESPN analyst Herm Edwards, a former head coach of the Jets and Chiefs.

“It makes it a little bit of a scam right now,” Edwards said. “Sean Payton opening his mouth like he did, he really reflects that this thing is going to become a sham if Bill Parcells takes the job.”

It’s a sham and a scam all right, but don’t blame Payton and the Saints. Blame the Rooney Rule.

Philosophically, I'm leery when anybody gets interviewed based solely on ethnicity. But as a practical matter, the NFL had to do something.

Only 14 of 262 coaches were minorities in 1980. Going into last season, 199 of 610 coaches were minorities.

In 2002, three head coaches were minorities. The Rooney Rule was instituted a year later. Last season, 11 minorities were interim or full-time head coaches.

Five lost their jobs. That led one assistant to tell CBSSports.com that it was “a troubling time for black coaches.”

Actually, it shows progress when everybody is held to the performance standards. And in an NFL first, an African-American general manager (Reggie McKenzie) fired an African-American coach (Hue Jackson).

McKenzie is the league’s sixth minority general manager. In 2002, there was one.

To at least some extent, we can thank the Rooney Rule. It was named for Pittsburgh owner Dan Rooney. He became U.S. ambassador to Ireland in 2009. It is unclear if the Obama Administration interviewed one minority before naming Rooney to the post.

Whatever its flaws, the Rooney Rule is having its intended effect. One big flaw is applying it equally in every situation.

The Lions didn’t interview a minority in 2003. Steve Mariucci was the NFL’s hottest coaching property, and he was a Michigan native.

Detroit said five minority candidates turned down interviews because everybody knew Mariucci was a shoo-in. The Lions didn’t bother setting up a charade interview, and the NFL fined them $200,000.

Now we have the Saints, who just need someone to keep Payton’s headset warm until 2013. Say what you will about a 70-year-old coming in cold, nobody can question Parcells’ credentials.

Does the NFL really believe the Saints will find a better candidate?

Granted, Snoop Dogg does have experience. He coached his son’s Pop Warner team. And he has never been accused of putting a bounty on an opposing player.

The NFL’s contention is that a candidate might have no shot, but he could make a good impression. That information might circulate around the league and help down the road.

But what promising coach wants to be such a blatant object of tokenism? It would be insulting to him and the Saints, but what’s the alternative?

A $200,000 fine? That would pay for a lot of illegal hits.

It's obvious that the Rooney Rule needs an amendment. Let’s call it the Parcells Rule.

If a coaching candidate has won 172 games and two Super Bowls, just let the team hire him.